Hope Victorious

  I write because I enjoy writing. I have always written letters, little poems, lists, thoughts, dreams and ideas. I love to write cards to friends. I fill journals and notebooks. I write on scraps of paper and the backs of receipts. In books I write my thoughts and questions in the margins. I always dreamed of writing and publishing books. I thought I would write children’s books. I dreamed of publishing a book of poems that would celebrate the beauty and peace of nature. I had a knowing, deep down, that I would write a book about healing, innocence and my journey to wholeness after sexual abuse. This last one is the dream that has been realized. I published “Restored Innocence” in December 2020. I wrote that book over the course of several years, in the midst of raising 4 boys. Taking the step of publishing, was huge and it transformed me. It was a risk, an investment and brought its own challenges. I’m so grateful for that experience and I hope to publish more books in the futur...

New beginnings can be both exciting and intimidating. Whether it is a new job, the start of a new year or living in a new city, there are unknowns associated with a “fresh start”. There is potential for both blessing and hardship, for growth, for challenges and rewards. Often the way one feels about the start of something new is largely impacted by how they feel about what preceded.   If your focus at the close of 2025 was on how you grew and the good things that took place, you are more likely to be looking forward with anticipation to this new year. If instead, your attention is drawn to the disappointments or failings of the completed year, it is more likely that you will enter the new year with discouragement and anxiety.   I find it helpful to acknowledge both the challenges that caused pain and those that felt rewarding. Strength can be drawn from both as well as wisdom and reliance. If there are regrets associated with ending a year or things that remain unresolved, it...